The single-purpose entity is affiliated with Beachwood, Ohio-based The Mid America Management Corp., whose “holdings exceed $400 million in total asset value and include multi-family, retail and industrial properties located in twelve states,” according to the company’s website.

General Assembly OKs Haslam's $32.8 Billion Budget

The Senate unanimously approved the spending plan on Wednesday afternoon, and the House later followed suit on an 83-14 vote.

On Thursday, the Senate unanimously agreed with minor changes the House made and sent the proposal to the governor.

The budget includes $77.4 million for a 1.5 percent pay raise for state employees, $22.2 million to reduce the sales tax on food by a quarter of a cent, and $18.7 million to continue the elimination of the state’s inheritance tax.

The measure also has $100 million to shore up the state’s rainy day fund, which is currently $356 million.

– The Associated Press

Triumph Bank Takes Top SBA Lender Spot

Memphis-based Triumph Bank is in the top spot on a recently released list by the U.S. Small Business Administration of lender rankings by loan dollar amounts in Tennessee.

The list covers Oct. 1 through Feb. 28. Triumph was ranked as the No. 1 SBA lender in the state, with a total of $5.8 million in SBA loans. Also, Triumph’s loan volume was focused mostly on Shelby County, underscoring its local emphasis.

According to the SBA list, Triumph Bank outperformed more than 40 lenders.

Triumph president Will Chase said SBA lending has been a major factor in the bank’s growth. Triumph was founded in 2006 and has grown its assets to more than $400 million.

– Andy Meek

South Main Design Challenge Goes Public at Trolley Tour

The latest and final part of the South Main Design Challenge, a competition among 35 teams of planners and architects, goes public Friday, April 26, at 431 S. Main St.

The presentation will be from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. during the monthly Friday Art Trolley Tour.

The 15 teams remaining in the competition will unveil their concepts for three more parts of the South Main streetscape: Army and Navy Parks, the one-story brick storefront that now has a plywood mural of buffaloes, and the fenced lot south of the Arcade restaurant that has a set of red banners with lyrics from songs that mention Memphis.

The Downtown Memphis Commission and the Memphis chapter of the American Institute of Architects present the competition.

– Bill Dries

Casada Faces High Hurdle on Campaign Finance Bill

An effort to revive a failed bill to boost the amount of money political groups can give to candidates and to do away with reporting requirements for donations by corporations faces a high hurdle in the House.

The bill sponsored by House Republican Caucus Chairman Glen Casada of Franklin on Wednesday received only 48 votes on the House floor – two short of the constitutional minimum to clear the chamber.

While Casada tells The Associated Press he found enough votes to pass the bill in the House, the clerk’s office confirms that he would need to gain a two-thirds vote in the committee that sets floor calendars.

That panel includes House Speaker Beth Harwell and several chairmen who either abstained or voted against the bill on Wednesday.

– The Associated Press

TVA Board Chair Says Public Utility 'Good Model'

The chairman of the Tennessee Valley Authority has expressed confidence in the organization following a proposal in the 2014 Obama budget last week that suggested a possible sale of the public utility.

At a Thursday board meeting, Bill Sansom said the board welcomes a proposed strategic review of the agency and any suggestions for ways to better serve the people in its seven-state region.

Sansom said he believes TVA is a good model and the review will also be good. But he also said some areas need improvement and suggested that making those improvements could help TVA in the upcoming review.

The board also approved creating an advisory council on energy resources. Among other things, the council would advise staff on energy efficiency and renewable energy.

– The Associated Press

Measure of US Economy’s Health Declines in March

A measure of the U.S. economy’s future health declined slightly in March, signaling that growth could slow this spring.

The Conference Board says its index of leading indicators dipped 0.1 percent last month to 94.7. That’s the first decline after three months of gains. The gauge is designed to anticipate economic conditions three to six months out.

Declines in consumer confidence, housing permits and new orders for manufactured goods pushed down the index.

Higher stock prices and a larger spread between long-term and short-term interest rates offset the decline. The index is derived from data that for the most part have already been reported individually.

“Data for March reflect an economy that has lost some steam,” said Ken Goldstein, an economist at the Conference Board.

Across-the-board government spending cuts that kicked in March 1 are likely weighing on growth, Goldstein said. Economists forecast the cuts will shave a half-percentage point from growth this year.

The private sector is also struggling, Goldstein added.

But overall, “the leading indicator still points to a continuing but slow growth environment,” Ataman Ozyildirim, also an economist at the Conference Board, said. The board is a research group with a mostly business membership.

The Leading Indicator index has increased 1.6 percent in the past six months, much faster than the 0.1 percent gain in the previous six months.

Most economists forecast growth accelerated to an annual rate of roughly 3 percent in the January-March quarter, up from a 0.4 percent rate in the fourth quarter. But many analysts expect growth is slowing in the April-June quarter, mostly because of the spending cuts.

– The Associated Press

Arkansas Lawmakers Advance Ethics, Campaign Rules

An Arkansas legislative panel has advanced an effort to outlaw most lobbyist gifts to elected officials, ban corporate campaign contributions and loosen term limits for state lawmakers.

The Joint Committee on Constitutional Amendments on Thursday approved a proposal to let voters decide on adding a package of ethics and campaign finance rules to the state’s constitution.

A previous version of the proposal cleared the House earlier this month, but was rejected earlier this week when the backers sought to make several minor changes to the bill. The panel also endorsed another proposed amendment that would have made it harder for people to get their proposals on the Arkansas ballot.

Both measures now head the House and Senate. If approved, they would appear on the 2014 ballot.